Self care is not a new idea, in fact, it’s been around for quite a while. How many times have you heard the adage “take care” when saying goodbye to someone? For most of us it’s just something we say out of habit, but it actually has a lot more meaning than we give it credit for. Taking care of yourself is the most important thing you can do for yourself and yet it can be not only difficult, but it’s the first thing we drop when we have a lot going on. The paradox is when we are overly stressed, we need self-care the most. If we don’t take care of ourselves we lose the ability to be the best version of ourselves. We become more stressed, sad, lethargic, and maybe irritable. While it can be hard to remember to take care of yourself first, this guide will help you make self care a priority without much concentrated effort.
1. Eat a Balanced Diet
This might seem like a no-brainer, but nutrition has a lot to do with our moods and overall health. While it would be beautiful if sugar and carbs were good for you and you could endlessly feed yourself donuts and pizza, but having a healthy and balanced diet is one of the first steps to self-care. Make sure you are feeding yourself lots of fruits, vegetables, and proteins. You will notice a dramatic increase in energy and your overall mood almost immediately. Changing your diet is one of the easiest things you can do for yourself.
2. Determine Your Needs
We need the reminder to take care of ourselves when we are overly stressed. Whether it’s a busy semester at University, work, or life just throws a lot at you all at once, it is important to sit down with yourself and evaluate what you need. Do you need some time alone? Relaxation? A vacation? Do you need to connect with someone? Take time to figure out what you need. This will allow self care to be more efficient. Rather than engaging in random self care activities, you will know what it is you need to do.
3. Make Time
A lot of times we say, “oh I don’t have time to relax” or “I don’t have time for that yoga class.” Whatever the excuse may be, in order to ensure that you make time for yourself, you have to schedule it. Schedule a massage or a spa weekend. If you are skipping out on an exercise class, make plans to go with a friend. Have them hold you accountable. You may think you don’t have time, but there is always time if you schedule it into your day.
4. Set Boundaries
If you are anything like me, you hate making people upset or letting your friends down. The whole idea of self care is to make yourself a priority. Sometimes that will result in saying no to other commitments and friends. Keeping those boundaries in place is extremely important when you are trying to take time for yourself. You can take half an hour to yourself and the world won’t end. You aren’t going to lose a friend if you say no to going out one night. Self-care is not selfish, it is necessary. So set your boundaries clearly and stick to them.
5. Get Enough Zzzz’s
This is one of the most basic things we can do for ourselves. Getting enough rest is usually seen as overrated, but it is more important than we realize. We are all different on the exact amount of sleep we need, but a good estimate is between 7-9 hours each night. Sleep is one of the first things we ditch when we are overwhelmed or overly busy, but we aren’t doing ourselves any good by giving up sleep. We may think that we are giving ourselves more time to finish whatever we are working on, but we are just harming ourselves. So as hard as it is, make sure you are getting enough R&R!
6. Get Outside and Moving
This doesn’t mean you have to go on a run every day, but getting outside and enjoying some fresh air every day is vital to our physical and mental well-being. Whether it’s going for a walk, doing yoga in the park, going for a drive with the windows down, going swimming, a bike ride, anything will work as long as you get outside and get the blood flowing in your body. Exercise is incredibly important to your emotional well-being, but even if your exercise is just a walk through a park, you will feel much better afterwards.
7. Surround Yourself With Good People
Perhaps the most important aspect of self-care is who you associate with. There are plenty of articles out there about toxic people and how you should surround yourself with positivity. Sure, it may be repetitive, but that’s because it’s true. Surrounding yourself with supportive, good-hearted people will help you to feel better about yourself and will give you the kind of energy you need to take care of yourself. If you have anyone in your life that brings you down or makes you feel anything less than perfect, then they are not someone that you should have in your life. Positivity breeds positivity and negativity breeds negativity so be cautious in who you choose to surround yourself with.
Following all of these steps will ensure that you are a happier, healthier you. Self care is what makes us the best versions of ourselves and it doesn’t have to be the taxing, time-consuming hassle that it has been made out to be. It only takes a few minutes a day and a slight lifestyle adjustment and it is worth it. You are the only person you are in control of, so you might as well use that to your advantage. You will be living with yourself for the rest of your life, so it is important that you take time to yourself just as you would for anyone else.
Any other self care tips?! Drop us a line!!
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